As we discussed in our previous post, which you can catch here, the mobile market is a rapidly growing industry, with 58 per cent of Britons are accessing content via apps and/or the mobile web each month (Comscore). In response, many brands and agencies are now turning to mobile agencies.
With this in mind we decided to compile a comprehensive guide for anyone searching for that perfect mobile agency, complete with key considerations and the questions to ask.
Top tips for choosing a mobile agency:
Adherence to Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) rules and best practices. It’s important to read up and review current MMA guidelines to ensure you know what to expect and whether an agency is operating correctly. You can find out about what the MMA expects from agencies here.
Extensive carrier connections and relationships. When looking into the mobile market, one should at a minimum be familiar with the operators/carriers in their market. This is particularly essential when discussing mobile marketing with agencies during a pitch.
Industry expertise and ability to be both strategic and tactical. Tactical firms will rely on their clients to provide the creative inspiration, but will be able to tactically and technically deliver on a brief. In contrast, strategic firms will be able to generate ideas and concepts to meet their clients’ objectives.
Depth of experience. It’s ok if the firm is new. After all, it’s the experience of its employees – and the team actually working on the your business – which actually matters.
Pay special attention of the mobile firm has an in-house handset/mobile user experience expert. This individual must understand the ins and outs of the handset user experience, from the latest phone and tablet models and trends to what’s to be expected in the near future. Ensure they are present in the pitch and that you come prepared with questions on current mobile handsets and trends. As this individual will be responsible for educating others within the agency regarding mobile hardware trends, it’s very important that they are well informed and passionate about the topic.
Demonstrable knowledge of databases. A big benefit to mobile is the ability to gather contacts for opt-in comms. To make the most of this, the agency selected needs to understand databases.
An appreciation for branding and design. As mobile is just one aspect of any campaign, it’s important that they’ll be able to coordinate their efforts with any other agencies involved and pick up graphical elements which will allow for consistency across the entire campaign.
Experience in handling heavy traffic load around live events. An agency that can deliver a great pitch but can’t operate under the pressure of high-volume comms can be disastrous. Make sure they can walk the walk as well as talking the talk.
Chemistry. It’s essential that the chemistry between agency and client is right. If you’re not feeling it, chances are they’re not for you and together you won’t create effective campaigns.
Results. It’s also important to ascertain whether the agency adopts ‘cool’ tactics and technologies just to be different and current, or if are they rooted in delivering Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). For example, QR codes are said to exclude approximately 69% of mobile users and save only a few fingertips for smartphone users (Source: http://www.mobileinc.co.uk/). Many have adopted QR codes, in some cases to the detriment of their clients.
Basic Questions to Ask Your Prospective Mobile Agency
- Do they have their own short code, or do they share with others? If they have their own code, your ‘text’ directive will likely be shorter and more easily communicated.
- Do they communicate via SMS or email? This seems a rather obvious question but it would appear many mobile campaigns are email-based as agencies don’t have the capability to send SMS.
Sources and helpful links
http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/27610.asp
http://mobilemarketingmagazine.com/sites/default/files/Bango%20Measuring%20Mobile%20Campaigns%20Whitepaper_0.pdf
http://blog.blumo.com/2009/03/04/5-basic-questions-to-ask-your-prospective-mobile-marketing-agency
